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Did drugs fuel Viking social gatherings and make them formidable and fearless warriors? Source: ContentHub / Adobe Stock.

Viking Drug Use: From Riotous Parties to Berserker Fury

The Vikings stand as legendary figures, their exploits on the seas and battlefields shrouded in myth and mystery. Yet beyond their tales of conquest and exploration lies a lesser-known aspect of...
Close-up representation of an armed pirate captain in a frock coat and a vest with a sword, dagger and a hook, smoking a pipe. Source: sharpner/Adobe Stock

Pirate Potheads? Drug Use and the Golden Age of Piracy (Video)

In the Golden Age of Piracy , pirates embraced a ritualistic affair with tobacco alongside their famed rum-filled punch bowls. Amid the dangers and monotony of 17th-century life, tobacco became a...
Mesopotamian cylinder seal showing Sumerians drinking beer with straws. Source: Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative / CC by SA 4.0.

Sumerians Used Straws to Drink Beer from Shared Vessels!

In the quest to uncover the everyday lives of ancient civilizations, archaeologists have stumbled upon some fascinating finds. Among these intriguing artifacts are the beer pots of ancient Sumer ,...
Egyptian painting of dancers and flutists, from the Tomb of Nebamun. (Public Domain)

The Wildest Party in Ancient Egypt- The Festival of Drunkenness (Video)

In ancient Egypt , amidst the grandeur of pyramids and pharaohs, there existed a unique annual event—the Festival of Drunkenness . This mid-August celebration found its origins in Egyptian mythology...
Winemaking in Georgia. Source: lobodaphoto / Adobe Stock.

Behind Georgia’s 8,000-Year-Old Winemaking Tradition (Video)

Georgia boasts an unparalleled winemaking legacy, stretching back an astonishing eight millennia . Research reveals that this land birthed the art of winemaking, nurturing over 40 vineyards today...
Ancient beer recreated. Source: 9parusnikov / Adobe Stock.

Recreating Ancient Ale with a 1,100-Year-Old Beer Recipe (Video)

Travis Rupp, far from being an ordinary brewmaster, delves into the past to recreate the tastes and textures of beers from ancient times. His ambition is to understand what the common folk, not just...
A refreshing looking glass of lager.	Source: Anastasiia/Adobe Stock

Study Shows How A Duke’s Jealousy Birthed Lager In 1602

Scientists scoured through old brewing documents searching for the origins of lager yeast. They discovered it was created in 1602 AD, when a jealous duke raided a brewery, after its childless owner's...
Roman mosaic illustrating a winemaking scene from the fourth century AD at Santa Costanza, Rome. Source: Jean Louis Mazieres/ CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Opulent Roman Winery With Fountains of Grape Juice Uncovered

Emlyn Dodd/The Conversation Recent excavations at the Villa of the Quintilii uncovered the remains of a unique winery just outside Rome. The mid-third-century AD building located along the Via Appia...
The world’s oldest brewery is located in Bavaria, Germany, established by Benedictine monks. Cellar scene with happy monks by Simony Jenson, 1904. Source: Public Domain

Weihenstephan: The Oldest Brewery in the World?

Humans have been making beer for thousands of years, but the oldest brewery still in existence wasn’t built until the 11th century. The Weihenstephan Brewery was founded in Freising, Germany in 1040...
The parent yeast of all lager brewing has been found in Ireland. Source: Nitr/Adobe Stock

The Difference Between Lager and Ale Found in Irish Soil

The prehistoric yeast used in Europe’s first lagers has been discovered in Ireland. However, it wasn’t identified at an archaeological site, but in soil samples taken at an Irish university campus...
The drunkard's cloak on display at the Torture Museum in Bruges. Source: Dimitris Kamaras / CC BY 2.0

Wearing the Drunkard’s Cloak Was the Worst Hangover in History

After a night of drinking, few things are worse than a heinous hangover. Or so I thought! For during the early modern era, heavy drinkers were faced with a far worse punishment. Those guilty of...
Hand-drawn illustration superimposed over a photo of the pre-Hispanic painting. Source: Frida Mateos / INAH

Painting Linked to Aztec God of Drunkenness Discovered in 16th Century Mexican Convent!

Archaeologists working at a Mexican holy site thought they were rediscovering a lost image of the Virgin Mary. But Mary never wore a feather plume, and seldom was she depicted within red circles. The...
Top image: Painting by Peder Severin Krøyer, entitled Hip, Hip, Hurrah!, depicting a group of artists toasting at a party. Source: Gothenburg Museum of Art / CC BY 4.0

Despite its Ritual Importance, “Toasting” Came from a Piece of Toast

We’ve all taken part in toasting rituals. At birthdays and weddings, in remembrance of loved ones or as a sign of respect, modern-day toasts range from a polite nod while wetting one’s lips to...
The Speyer wine bottle (Carole Raddato / CC by SA 2.0)

1,700-Year-Old Wine in Sealed Bottle is Still Drinkable!

The Speyer wine bottle is the oldest known wine bottle in the world. Dated to 325 – 359 AD, the ancient wine has remained sealed in its bottle for nearly 1,700 years. Despite the fact that it would...
A new multidisciplinary study has looked at Roman winemaking from the ground up through the analysis of residues found at the bottom three Roman wine amphorae. A group of amphorae recovered from the sea off the coast of Tuscany, Italy. Source: Salvatore / Adobe Stock

Secrets of Roman Winemaking Revealed By Pollen-Charcoal Residue Analysis

The Roman empire has historically been associated with wine and winemaking. Now more about just how they produced the beverage that was consumed by practically all in the nation, rich or poor, has...
Prescription drugs to combat stress and stay awake. Source: Victor Moussa / Adobe Stock

Drugs in War: A Long, Troubled History

When we hear the two words, “drugs” and “war,” used in the same sentence, we might think of the “War on Drugs” but what about drugs during war or drugs after war? Addictive drugs and armed warfare...
Ancient amphorae, China. Source: lotusjeremy / Adobe stock

4,000 Years Ago, Chinese Advances Were Fueled By Mass Beer Production!

What were the important forces and factors that led to notable evolutionary leaps in Chinese culture more than 4,000 years ago? New research identifies one major cultural development that helped...
A monkey drinks from a can of beer, representing the study finding that human alcohol consumption relates to a primal draw to the ethanol in fruits.	 Source: michalcbf6 / Adobe Stock

It’s Monkey Business! Human Desire For Alcohol Consumption Is Hardwired

When Dr. Robert Dudley of the University of California, Berkeley, proposed a hypothesis in 2000, and then published a book called ‘ The Drunken Monkey: Why We Drink and Abuse Alcohol’ on the same...
Samples of Schinus mole discovered at Quilcapampa in Peru which were used by Wari culture to make an alcoholic drink. Source: Lisa Milosavljevic & Royal Ontario Museum / Antiquity Publications Ltd

Wari Culture Used Alcohol and Drugs to Maintain Political Control

An altered state of consciousness to rule an ancient empire? Not a plot of a television series or a fantasy novella, but a page out of the fascinating book that is human history. A new study...
Israeli archaeologists working at the Tel Tsaf site in the Jordan valley have discovered the earliest evidence of social drinking in the Middle East, dating to 5000 BC. This image shows medieval people eating and drinking together in an ancient kitchen interior. 		Source: Nejron Photo / Adobe Stock

Earliest Social Drinking Evidence in the Middle East Found in Israel

Social drinking history in the Middle East has been rewritten with finds at Tel Tsaf, Israel. According to the Times of Israel , Israeli archaeologists have found the first evidence of social...
Declaration of Christmas Peace in 2014 in Porvoo, Finland.	Source: CC BY-SA 3.0

Christmas Peace: Finnish Criminals, You’ve Been Warned For Over 600 Years

An ancient Finnish law promising harsher sentences for Christmas criminals was read out to an empty town square. Christmas is nearly upon us, and if you haven’t already outright cancelled family...
Medieval knight with beer

The Water of Life: Alcohol as Medicine Through the Ages

While no one knows exactly when alcohol was first produced, it was presumably the result of a fortuitous accident that occurred at least tens of thousands of years ago. However, the discovery of late...
Excavation of Byzantine-era winery by the Israel Antiquities Authority at Yavne, Israel. Source: Assaf Peretz / Israel Antiquities Authority

Industrial Size Byzantine-Era Winery Unearthed in Israel

The largest and most advanced wine production facility in the Byzantine world was constructed in fourth or fifth century Palestine, specifically in the city of Yavne near Israel’s Mediterranean coast...
Great Wall of China, China.

8 Ancient Chinese Inventions the West Had Not Imagined

According to the statistics provided by the World Economic Forum, nowadays China can boast its position as the world’s second largest spender on scientific research and development, yielding only to...

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